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Several years ago while standing in EAA line, I recognizedthe person next to me….an EAA Board Member.

I told this board member that during the off season….theboard needed to visit each motel and tell them to “knock off the price gouging”.The EAA Board Member replied…”stay in the dorm”….which I replied…. ”you stay inthe dorm & I will stay in your house”.

Several years ago while standing in EAA line, I recognizedthe person next to me….an EAA Board Member.

I told this board member that during the off season….theboard needed to visit each motel and tell them to “knock off the price gouging”.The EAA Board Member replied…”stay in the dorm”….which I replied…. ”you stay inthe dorm & I will stay in your house”.

The dorm isn't all that cheap, either -- especially the ones with air conditioning. But it is a lot cheaper than the hotels.

Wife informed me last week that she is coming to AV2018. (She normally only goes every other year.) Two reasons: She convinced one of her high school friends to come and bring he father (bucket list item); and she spent about half the time at AV2017 volunteering at the forums and she liked it.

"Special Event" pricing is common everywhere and has existed near forever. I recall reading tales of the days of the Gold Rush in California and Alaska and seeing pictures of prices on all foods, lodging and mining gear going for astronomical prices. I won't begrudge the local Oshkosh vendors, especially those owning the very limited housing in the area, from pricing according to what the market will bear. I simply marvel at the monetary level the market does indeed bear.

Quite honestly, I couldn't be a volunteer at the 'under 30 mile' motel rates that AirVenture commands. But as I always say in this life, so many things are NOT too expensive...I just can't afford them.

Any wonder I camp with my airplane? $27 a day seems bargainish compared to motels etc. Granted, no air-conditioning, but over the last dozen years, that's not been much of a problem other than a couple nights a few years ago, when daytime temps climbed to 100F. A fan has always made it quite bearable for sleeping. The showers are adequate, as are other necessary facilities, for campers. And the camaraderie among the campers is hard to beat.

Cary

"I have slipped the surly bonds of earth...,
put out my hand and touched the face of God." J.G. Magee

Yes, we caught the shuttle a couple of times but my flying buddy is a bit impatient, so we walked a bunch even when we could have ridden the trams. That was in 2011, last year I got him to calm down a bit and wait for the trams. I had to pull rank, (age) on him. I said, remember, I'm 70 and you're 44, I ain't freakin' walking anymore, if you can't wait 10 min. I'll see you back at camp ! On one instance we were going by the camp store before heading back to the tent, he elected to walk and I rode the tram. I guess in was a good 15 minutes and I beat him to the store, you should have seen the look on his face. He's a great guy, a great pilot, a great friend and he's like a son but he is a little anal sometimes !!! Oh, he and I will be flying into AirVenture in 2018 !!!
Bob

Several years ago while standing in EAA line, I recognized the person next to me….an EAA Board Member.

I told this board member that during the off season….the board needed to visit each motel and tell them to “knock off the price gouging”. The EAA Board Member replied…”stay in the dorm”….which I replied…. ”you stay in the dorm & I will stay in your house”.

EAA has no input or oversight of what individual hotel owners/managers decide to charge for their hotel rooms. It's classic supply and demand at work. Whatever the market will bear. So, as long as people continue to fill the hotels at the rates they're charging, the rates will stay where they are. The only recourse is for people to stop booking the hotels. Then the rates would come down until the hotels were full again. But I don't think that's likely to happen, so complaining to an EAA board member isn't going to have any real effect, other than possibly making you somehow feel better.